DISCLAIMER: X-MEN AND ALL RELATED CHARACTERS ARE PROPERTY OF MARVEL.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story takes place after "Stealing Rogue," when Wolverine and Rogue left New York. As this story begins they have been on the road for three days, on their way to where Wolverine lives in the city of Banff, in Alberta Canada.

Rogue ran as fast as she could through the forest. Her heart pounded in her ribcage and the wind stung her face. She could hear sound of her pursuers as they chased after her. She didn't know who they were, or what they wanted, but she knew she had to get away.

Up ahead, there was a short overhang in the rock. Jumping over it, Rogue scurried underneath the jutting rock, hoping against hope that the others hadn't seen her. She waited as her pulse raced and she tried to keep her breathing quiet. Soon she heard footsteps approaching fast and the sounds of people running over and past her hiding place. Rogue waited a few long minutes before she peeked back over her shoulder. Seeing no one, she carefully crawled out. With one last look towards the horizon, she turned to climb back over the rock-- and found herself face to face with the muzzle of a rifle.

Suddenly her eyes shot open, and Rogue found herself staring, cross-eyed, at the end of Wolverine's finger, inches away from her forehead.

"AAAHHHH!" she screamed.

Wolverine's hands jerked to cover his ears, as Rogue scurried away from him on her hotel bed.

"What the Hell do you think you're doing!" she demanded, trying to catch her breath.

Wolverine glared at her before moving his hands away from his ears. When she failed to look apologetic, he sighed.

"I had a thought." he said matter-of-factly.

"Is it lonely?" she asked nastily.

He gave her a withering look. "Finished?"

She rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything.

"I was just wondering if your powers worked when you were sleeping."

"And you thought that you'd just tap me and find out?" She asked flatly.

Wolverine nodded. "Straight and to the point. Would have answered my question wouldn't it?"

Rogue thought about pointing out that it also would have allowed her to wake up with yet more of his memories, plus an unconscious body in her bed. Still, she couldn't argue with his logic.

"Well, Ah'm awake now. Guess you'll just have to go on wondering."

She moved to the other side and got out of bed, but Wolverine didn't move. She looked at him, as he sat there staring at her.

"What?" she asked, unnerved.

He stood up and walked around to stand in front of her.

"Touch me."

She raised her eyebrows. "Come again?"

"Touch me," he repeated.

Rogue backed away slowly, debating on whether she would be able to get across the bed and out the door before he caught up to her.

"Now, Wolverine, don't you think it's a little early to be drinking?"

Wolverine rolled his eyes. "Look, you want to learn to control your powers, right?"

Rogue nodded slowly, careful not to agitate him with disagreement.

"Well, how are you gonna learn if you never try?"

"Well that is a good question. Ah should ponder that while Ah'm in the shower." She tried to sidle around him, but he stepped in front of her. Feinting left, she waited for him to move to block her and then dashed to the right. Jumping over the corner of the bed, she made it into the bathroom, just as Wolverine got to the door. Locking in behind her she turned to the shower.

"Rogue, you're gonna have to try sometime." Wolverine insisted through the door. She didn't answer and he growled. "Women. Always making things more difficult than they have to be."

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Rogue opened the door to the bathroom and carefully stuck her head out. The room seemed empty. Listened intently, but all she heard was the TV was in the living room. Quietly, Rogue slipped out of the bathroom.

All she had on was her towel, since she hadn't had a chance to grab her suitcase in her mad dash away from Wolverine.

"What's wrong with that man, anyway?" Rogue murmured to herself. "'Touch me' indeed. Man's got a death wish. Serve him right if Ah did touch him." Walking over to the chair her suitcase sat on, Rogue opened it up to remove her clothes. She had to hurry if she was going to get dressed before Wolverine knew she was out of the shower.

* * *

Wolverine peeked out of the closet as Rogue came out of the bathroom. He smiled. She had left the shower running to try and fool him into thinking she was still in there. Nice try, he thought to himself.

As he watched her walk over to her suitcase, Wolverine felt a little silly. As a grown man, he didn't think he should allow himself to be reduced to hiding in a woman's closet, just so he could get her in a position to touch him.

Wolverine winced as he realized how that last thought sounded. Shaking his head, Wolverine looked up at the shelf of the closet. He had to get a grip on himself. He just wanted to help Rogue, that's all. She'd said she wanted to learn control over her powers, and she was damn well going to do it.

Feeling better, Wolverine nodded to himself. Focused once again on the task at hand, he looked back out through the crack in the closet door-- just as Rogue dropped her towel.

* * *

Rogue stopped for a moment. She could have sworn she'd heard a choking sound in her room. Grabbing her shirt, she held it in front of her as she turned around. Her eyes scanned the room, but she didn't see anyone. She could just barely see the TV in the next room. A special on Gray Wolves was on. Rogue leaned over a little, but half the couch was hidden from her view. Frowning, she straightened up and turned back to the wall and got dressed in hurry.

After she was finished, she took a deep breath to prepare herself for Wolverine. She just had to be firm with him. She wasn't going to use him as a guinea pig. Nodding to herself, she turned around and walked to the door leading into the living room.

Wolverine grinned as he stepped out of the closet, blocking her path..

"Ready?" he asked innocently.

Rogue started in surprise. Recovering quickly, she smiled kindly at Wolverine. "Ah am so glad you feel this comfortable with me." She put a hand on his shoulder and Wolverine's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"What are you doing?"

It was Rogue's turn to look innocent. "Ah'm just offering you mah support. It's not everyday a man like you gets the courage to come out of the closet."

Wolverine quirked his eyebrows at her implication. "You think I've come out of the closet, huh?"

Rogue nodded sympathetically. "Yeah."

A playful glint lit Wolverine's eyes and Rogue felt her pulse pick up a little. Suddenly she was very aware that her hand was still resting on his shoulder.

"Well," Wolverine said slowly. "I would always be willing to go back in the closet." Rogue pulled her hand back and stepped backwards. Wolverine smiled and continued. "And as long as you need the practice, I guess I could always take you with me." He took a step forward, his body almost touching hers.

Rogue's eyes nervously darted around the room. Looking out into the main room, she spotted the television. "Oh look! A Gray Wolf special!"

Wolverine looked confused and Rogue took advantage of the moment and pushed past him. She jumped over the back of the couch, and pretended to be captivated by the Discovery Channel. Wolverine rolled his eyes.

"I give up," he announced, walking into the main room. "If you don't want to learn to control your powers, I'm not gonna force you."

Rogue nodded, still watching the television. "Good idea. Very wise."

Just then the phone rang. Wolverine gave Rogue one last look and then walked over to answer the phone.

"Yeah?" He was silent for a minute. "Does he want the entire thing gone, or just the one section?" Silence. "Fine, but that's gonna cost him." Silence. "I'll be in Laughlin City by tonight." Silence. "I'm stopping there on the way, probably be another night before I get back." Silence. "Uh-huh. Fine, just make sure he pays first." He hung up the phone.

"Did you know that wolves are more afraid of humans than humans are of them? I mean, this guy says that if you put a man in a cage with a wolf, the wolf would cower in a corner and practically piss itself. It wouldn't even fight back."

When Wolverine didn't answer, she turned to look at him. He seemed lost in thought.

"Who was on the phone?"

"A guy. He has a job for me."

"How did he know you were here?" she asked curiously.

"They're our kind of people."

Understanding dawned on Rogue's face. "Ah."

Wolverine nodded. "Yeah, ah. Now get ready, we're leaving." He grabbed his jacket and bag on his way to the door. "I'm gonna go make sure the truck's ready."

Rogue nodded, and stood up to turn off the TV.

*Gray Wolves mate for life. This wolf has challenged the Alpha wolf's dominance by attempting to mate with the Alpha's female. [sounds of snapping and growling]*

Rogue grimaced. "Brutal." Then she turned off the television set and went into her room to get her things.

* * *

Rogue looked out the window of the truck. The sky was already getting dark and the snow was piling up. Still, even the sparkling blanket of white couldn't do anything for the appearance of the run down buildings.

"Ah thought you said we were gonna try to make it as far as Laughlin City before we stopped?" she asked, turning to face Wolverine.

He snorted. "This is Laughlin City."

Rogue raised her eyebrows. She looked out her window again. "Nice place. Come here often?"

Wolverine opened his door and stepped out of the truck. "Nope. This'll be a learning experience for both of us." He chuckled at her expression. "Relax, tomorrow we're on our way to Banff."

Rogue giggled.

"What?" Wolverine asked.

"Nothing. It's just the name of that city sounds like the noise mah brother makes when he teleports."

The blue bitch does have more kids. "I didn't know you had a brother."

Rogue nodded. "His name's Kurt. We call him Nightcrawler."

Wolverine shrugged and turned around. He started walking towards the nearest building as Rogue slammed her door shut.

"Hey Wolvie!"

Wolverine turned around with a quirked eyebrow. "'Wolvie'?"

Rogue thought about it and nodded. "Yeah, Wolvie. Ah like it." Wolverine looked about to say something and she cut him off. "Are you sure the bike's gonna be okay out here?"

Wolverine looked at the motorcycle in the bed of the truck. "It'll be fine."

"You do know you're gonna have to return it eventually."

Wolverine didn't answer. Together they walked into the run-down excuse for a building. The smell of beer and smoke hit them as they walked in. Wolverine's senses immediately perked up at the smell of blood and sweat. Shouting was coming from the other side of the room.

"There's a cage with two men in it over there. Ah wonder what they're doin'?" She asked squinting in the direction of the large metal cage that took up most of the space in the bar.

Wolverine was about to respond, when a large man came ambling over to him.

"Hey, you the guy we're waiting for?" He asked, clamping a meaty hand on Wolverine's shoulder.

Rogue stifled her laughter as Wolverine stared at the man's hand on his shoulder. The man didn't seem to notice. "Hell, no wonder the prize money's so high, you probably bring in more money in one night than the others bring in all year."

"Prize money?" Rogue asked curiously.

The man looked over at Rogue, as if noticing her for the first time. The way he seemed to be undressing her with his eyes made Rogue's skin crawl. Wolverine growled and the guy started. "Huh? Oh, you know, the prize money. Guy who lasts the longest in the cage gets a thousand dollars." The guy's eyes narrowed. "Hey, haven't you done this before?"

Wolverine ignored him. "Lasts the longest against who?"

"Whoever jumps in to fight."

Rogue looked at Wolverine. "Ah don't know, Shugah. Remember what Animal Planet said about wolves when they're trapped in a cage with a human."

Wolverine turned a withering look at her and Rogue giggled. He turned back to the man. "I'm ready." The guy nodded slowly. This guy may not be the one the boss was waiting for, but he'd do till the real guy came along. As he and Wolverine walked towards the cage, Rogue shook her head in amusement and went over to sit at the bar.

The bartender gave her tight blue jeans and black turtleneck an appreciative glance. "Name your poison, gorgeous."

Rogue looked away from watching Wolverine and the man standing by the cage, and faced the bartender. "Ah'll have a Canadian Gold."

"Nice choice."

Rogue turned to face the speaker. He seemed to be in his early to mid thirties with long tangled brown hair and a scruffy, unshaven face. His leather jacket had seen better days, and the T-shirt under it definitely wasn't keeping the wind out.

"Name's Rob." He smiled at Rogue and sat down on the stool beside her.

Across the room, Wolverine frowned as he watched the man talking to Rogue. He knew what the men who came here were looking for, and he didn't like the way the man was eyeing Rogue like a piece of meat.

He was jerked out of his reverie then, as he entered the cage. The crowd got silent for a moment as the announcer declared Wolverine the new challenger. As Wolverine looked around the room, the crowd whispered amongst themselves. Something about the stranger unnerved them and for a moment Wolverine didn't think anyone was going to agree to fight him.

"I'll fight him." Came a confident voice from the tables. A large bald man stood up from his seat and turned around to the cheers of his friends. Ambling up to the cage, he took off his denim jacket and tossed it aside.

Wolverine grinned in anticipation as he and the other man began to circle one another in the cage. This was going to be fun.

"Ah'm not interested, thank you."

Rogue turned her attention back to the cage fight and continued to sip on her beer, but Rob didn't look discouraged.

"Aw, come on, honey. You haven't even gotten to know me." He leaned in closer and Rogue could smell the alcohol on his breath.

She took a deep breath through her mouth and turned a tight smile on her unwanted visitor. "Look you aging Hell's Angel reject. Ah said Ah'm not interested and getting me drunk by breathing on me isn't gonna help your chances of changing mah mind. Get away from me."

The bald man jumped back as Wolverine's fist swung towards him. As the smaller man got closer, the bald man brought a fist down between his shoulder blades and Wolverine grunted, dropping down on one knee.

Rogue almost dropped her beer as the man grabbed her arm.

"You're not bein' very friendly," He murmured dangerously. "You think you're too good for me?"

Rogue felt her temper flaring up. All she wanted was to be left alone in peace. If this ignorant savage didn't back off, she was going to be sorely tempted to hurt him. Thoughts of Wolverine's words came floating back to her. You're gonna have to try sometime.

No, Rogue thought to herself. It would be wrong of her to use her powers on someone just because they were bothering her.

Her lack of response seemed to be an encouraging sign for Rob. He leered at her and moved his hand down to her thigh.

Then again, Rogue thought, Ah'm gonna have to try sometime. She turned with a smile.

"Yeah, Jack! Nice one!"

Jack smirked at Wolverine as he towered over him. Posing for the crowd, he raised his fist and brought it down towards Wolverine.

Just as his fist was about to make contact, Wolverine whipped around and brought his own fist up to block him. As they connected, Jack's face twisted in pain. Wolverine's mouth turned up in a feral grin. It was time for things to get interesting.

"Hey man, you had enough?"

The bartender looked at the man beside Rogue, as he set down another beer for her. He laid a hand on the guy's arm and Rob tilted his head up to squint at him.

"Yeah man," he said gruffly. He tried to sit up a little more, but the effort seemed to be too much for him and he put his head down on his arms.

"Hey, maybe you outta get a ride home. You don't look so good."

Rogue tried to look concerned. "Ah told him his forehead felt a little warm. Maybe he's sick." She turned and hid a smile as she took a sip of her new beer.

The big man, Jack, stumbled backwards in pain. Wolverine straightened up. He took a few slow steps towards the other man, and brought his fist up again, to connect with his face. There was a sick sound of flesh bruising, as Wolverine's adamantium infused bones hit Jack's face. The man stumbled forward and Wolverine threw his head back, adamantium skull hitting the other man's head hard, knocking him into unconsciousness.

"What's your name?" asked the announcer, as Jack was carried out of the cage.

"Just call me Wolverine."

The announcer nodded and held Wolverine's hand up in the air. "Ladies and gentlemen, our new King of the Cage . . . the Wolverine!"

As the crowd went wild, Wolverine suddenly remembered Rogue, and looked over to the bar. She was sitting there making eyes at a man across the room. Wolverine growled as the man got up with a knowing smirk and sauntered over to Rogue. He abruptly started out of the cage.

When he got closer to the bar, he saw Rogue talking to the guy he'd seen. Her hand was resting on the bar in front of her, and Wolverine's eyes widened when he realized she'd taken off her glove. Coming up behind her, he heard Rogue speak.

"Hmmm. It's a bit chilly in here."

The man smiled slowly. He lifted his hand and moved to put it over Rogue's bare skin. "Well you know what they say, 'cold hands—'"

"Out cold." Wolverine finished for him. Grabbing the man by the shoulder, Wolverine jerked him away before he could touch Rogue's bare hand. "Scram, bub."

The guy looked like he wanted to argue, but one look at Wolverine changed his mind.

Wolverine turned back to Rogue. "What the Hell was that all about? You do know what he was thinking don't you?"

Rogue looked at him in amusement. The pretended to think about it for a minute. "Yes. Ah'm pretty sure he wanted to fuck me."

Wolverine's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Wh- y- how-" he sputtered.

Rogue rolled her eyes and stood up. Wolverine looked at her incredulously as she strode out of the bar, the eyes of several men following her out. Wolverine went after her. Leaving the bar, Rogue started walking back towards the truck. Wolverine ran to catch up to her. Just as he was about to grab her arm, she whipped around to face him.

"Ah was just practicing, Wolvie. Ah wasn't gonna really hurt him. Ah just thought that as long as Ah was around a bunch of drunks, it wouldn't hurt to practice. The first guy got woozy, but everyone just assumed he'd had too much to drink."

Understanding dawned on Wolverine's face. He nodded. "Good plan. Sorry I interrupted."

Rogue laughed. "So what's the plan now?"

Wolverine thought about that. "I could stay in the ring, earn some money. You feel up to practicin' some more?"

"Ah can handle a couple more. Ah can file their minds away, so Ah'm not gonna freak out or anything. However, there is one thing."

"What's that?"

"You think you can look a little less threatening? Ah don't reckon Ah'm gonna catch many flies with vinegar."

* * *

Wolverine breathed heavily as he leaned one arm against the side of the cage. He felt great. It had been too long since he'd been able to cut loose and kick some ass without having to worry about missions or security.

He lifted his head to scan the crowd for Rogue. He smiled when he saw her working on yet another practice dummy. She was laughing with a guy at his table, a hand resting on the other man's every once in a while.

She must be doing better, thought Wolverine. That guy's still conscious.

The guy that had told him about the cage fight when he and Rogue had arrived, walked into the cage. Making his way to Wolverine's side, he smiled.

"There's only about ten minutes left for anyone to challenge you, man. I'd say—"

Suddenly there was a loud crash as the door to the bar was thrown open. Both men turned to see what all the noise was about, and the man next to Wolverine started to back away. Wolverine watched as a huge man strode forcefully into the bar. His hair was long, matted, and blonde and his eyes were almost totally feline. A wolf's skin was draped over his shoulders. All in all he looked like a feral mountain man with an attitude.

"Who's that?" Wolverine asked.

The man continued to back away. "That," he said nervously. "Is the guy we were waiting for."

"There a runt in my cage." Sabretooth grinned, showing slightly sharper and elongated eyeteeth. He walked up until he mere inches away from Wolverine. "You here to fight?"

Wolverine smiled.

Rogue frowned as Wolverine began to face off against the newcomer. The man was huge and, unlike the other opponents Wolverine had been facing, looked as though he may actually have a chance. Unfortunately there wasn't anything she could do. She could just imagine Wolverine's reaction if she jumped into the cage to save him. Sighing, she turned back to her current companion. Johnny, she thought his name was.

Johnny noticed the object of her attention and heard her sigh as she looked away. "What's wrong? You don't like fights, sweetheart?" he asked condescendingly.

Rogue fought down the irritated response that came to her mind and just smiled sweetly. "Ah'm just so worried. What if one of them really gets hurt?" She put on her best Southern Belle front, and scooted closer.

Johnny smiled. In the background Rogue heard snarling and the rattling of metal. Whoever had just hit the wall of the cage had to be hurting. She shook her head, and tried to shut it out of her mind.

Johnny reached up and tucked her hair behind her ear, letting his fingers trail over her ear and down her neck. Rogue felt the pull start and tried to hold it back. For a second she swore her powers were going to stop. A roar came from the cage and Rogue whipped her head around. Wolverine's claws had unsheathed themselves and were sunk deep into Sabretooth's chest. As shouts started coming from the audience, Rogue felt her powers pick up again. Hurriedly, she pulled away, but it was too late. Johnny slipped into unconsciousness. As his body hit the floor, all eyes were on Rogue.

"She's a mutie too! Get her!"

Wolverine watched in horror as the crowd began to swarm towards Rogue. Sabretooth growled as Wolverine's claws retracted, and Wolverine stared at him in surprise as his wounds healed almost instantly.

Before Sabretooth could fully recover, Wolverine slashed upwards at his eyes. Screaming in pain, Sabretooth reared back and Wolverine slashed at him again, this time across the throat. Keeping close, he waited for Sabretooth to fall to his knees. Clamping his hands together, Wolverine brought his arms down on Sabretooth's neck, the adamantium in his bones practically reverberating with the blow. Sabretooth fell unconscious and bleeding.

The crowd in the bar had fallen silent during Wolverine's savage attack on Sabretooth. Rogue was on top of the table, a broken bottle in her hand. One man was screaming from where she'd managed to get him with the broken glass, and the other people were milling around like buzzards surrounding a dying animal. Wolverine growled and leapt out of the cage. Running around the side, he parted the crowd easily, everyone trying to get away from his bloody claws. Rogue took advantage of the situation and jumped down from the table. Running towards him, they turned and ran towards the door together.

The ran as fast as they could until they reached the truck. Quickly getting in, they both slammed their doors and Wolverine peeled out of the parking lot.

As they reached the main road, Wolverine slowed down a little. For a moment, neither of them said anything. Then Rogue began to laugh.

Wolverine glanced sideways at her.

"That was a rush!" Rogue laughed. The few beers she'd had were mixing with the adrenaline rush, and the combination was making her giddy.

Wolverine had to smile. His own adrenaline was still pumping. Looking down at his knuckles, still covered in Sabretooth's blood, Wolverine felt the animal in him howl in satisfaction. That had been kinda fun.

* * *

Wolverine's eyes opened slowly. Something was wrong. He sat up. Looking around his hotel room, his eyes landed on his digital clock. It was 4:00 a.m. Squinting, Wolverine searched for what had woken him. Suddenly his sensitive hearing picked up noise coming from Rogue's adjoining room. Getting out of bed, Wolverine went over to the door that separated them and listened. He could hear Rogue moaning. Quickly, he got up and pulled on his jeans and long-sleeved flannel.

He opened the door. Rogue was writhing on her sheets, obviously trapped in a nightmare. Walking over to the bed, he sat down.

"Hey," he said softly.

Rogue's eyes stayed closed as she continued to fight in her nightmare.

"Rogue." Wolverine leaned down and gently shook her shoulders. "Rogue—"

Suddenly, Rogue sat bolt upright, her hands shooting out to push him back. Wolverine froze as her bare hands clutched at his face. Before he could react, he felt the pull of her powers. He fought against it briefly, but it was no use.

"Rogue," he gasped.

Rogue's eyes shot open. For a moment, Wolverine felt the pull stop, before Rogue pulled her hands away from his face. Rogue looked at him in horror as the blackness rushed up to reach him and he felt himself falling.